Friday, January 21, 2011

That bad ole Red River

I have been freaking out lately with the flood predictions for this coming spring. It's pretty grim.  We had the biggest flood in 1997 and our flood way just barely kept it in check in the city.  All the farms from the North Dakota border to Winnipeg were under siege. All our neighbours to the South in Grand Forks USA got flooded big time. It was a disaster. They are saying that might happen again this year. 

This is the year we are building our dream home barely a mile from the river.  Since then they have made it mandatory to build up your properties to the 97 flood levels ... and ours is...but...as it was in 97 they did not get flooded on the river side...but could not get access to their homes because it was to dangerous. Ours would be in that area.

I remember that time well, because my BIL lived with us for almost 3 weeks ... and he only lives about half a mile from our new house. The Army was patrolling the whole area and wouldn't let him in his house. He never had to sandbag either because his property was well above the limit....but the river ..she is the devil... even though it didn't come up to his property level  it could come back to it from a lower lying area and flood him. 

I will never forget that time.  We live about three miles from the river and I never thought about it at that time until we got a newletter in the mail saying we would have to be prepared.  Because we have two rivers surrounding our city and now the other "little" river was now going to be a problem.  I clenched my butt alot that month.  What I remember was that everything was going to back up.  Then they started to build dikes all over the farm lands to the West.  Every day we had updates on the news on how that was going.  I remember they had old school buses and junk all around the dikes.  I don't know why.  Or I can't remember.  A buffer?  I am not sure. 

I'm just hoping that won't happen to us. 

THAT  my friends would be a "bummer." of all bums.

6 comments:

Brenda said...

I hope you all stay high and dry this Spring too Miz Joan. When you have flooding up there much of it must find it's way down here and even as mighty as the Mississippi River is, he can only tote so much of a load before he spreads out and ruins just planted crops or delays planting. I hope your beautiful new home stays safe and sound.

Lena . . . said...

I remember the flood of '97 very well. We live on the bank of the Buffalo, which is a tributary of the Red by Fargo. Our stayed dry, but all our outbuildings had three to four feet of water in them and access to our property was cut off for weeks. I don't want to go through that again, but it certainly looks like we're going to. Every time it snows more I turn all panicky inside. What a way to live.

Donna said...

It's not too late to move to Texas....:0)
Praying you'll stay safe, high and dry!!!!
Hughugs

Sally said...

Oh goodness, I hope it doesn't happen, Joan. Will have good thoughts that it won't. (hugs)

Judy said...

OHMIGOSH--I have never worried about a flood--unless the Great Lakes someday cover the whole state--which I suppose could happen. I will be watching the news and praying it doesn't happen to you and you must let us know what is going on.

Susan said...

is going on in the world with all this flooding every where. Melting polar icecaps? Hope you survive unscathed.